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Editor:
I found Mr. McKay's letter ("Creation of a $200,000 campus map is bureaucratic waste of money," Dec. 2) regarding the drainage map rather amusing. Unfortunately, the Wildcat seems to have taken his rant seriously as evidenced by the cartoon in the Dec. 5 edition. What Mr. McKay failed to understand is that there are more types of maps than the ones he is accustomed to using. I doubt that the map Mr. McKay used to find his way to the Harvill Building includes elevation, slope orientation, curb height, drain location, drain capacity in gallons per minute, location of building roof spouts or other information that would be needed by an engineer to model water runoff on campus.
Creation of such map, most likely in a computer database form, would probably be well worth the proposed $200,000 cost, as it would save much more than tackling the problem piecemeal based on individual complaints. A detailed map that includes the above information could be used to computer model any planned changes to make sure that a fix in one area of campus doesn't create a worse problem in another area.
I'd suggest that the Wildcat send a reporter to interview campus planner Grant McCormick again before starting an uneducated crusade. This time, ask details about the map-making process. Find out what information must be included in the map, how the data is going to be generated, if measurements from other government agencies will be included to save money, how the map will be analyzed to come up with a plan for correcting drainage problems, and who will be responsible for keeping the map updated for future use. You'll probably find that smart people are doing a good job and actually saving money for the university.
Kendel McCarley
graduate student
electrical and computer engineering
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